Rolled bandages have many applications in the fields of human and veterinary medicine, as well as in various sports activities. Pressure bandages, for example, may be used to bind a wound or to temporarily immobilize an injured limb. Supports for injured knee and arm joints often comprise an elasticized rolled bandage which is wrapped around the affected member. Similar and other uses are found in athletics, one example of the latter being the bandaging of a boxer's hands to avert injuries thereto.
Equine leg injuries of a relatively minor nature frequently occur in the lower leg region between the fetlock and knee. Injuries such as scrapes, bruises and contusions are usually treated by wrapping the affected limb with a rolled bandage in an effort to prevent exacerbating the injury or to treat same with antiseptic solutions, liniments and the like. Liquids of this type may be applied by way of a pad held in place by the bandage or, in some instances, simply by applying the liquid directly through a wetted bandage.
Like bandages are also employed to prevent minor injuries during training sessions, in which case the bandage is used either with or without padding.
Bandage wrapping is facilitated by using small rolls thereof and overlapping the free ends of sequential rolls provides extra length as required. Large bandage rolls are generally avoided because they are awkward to use and involve cutting which produces bandages of short and unequal lengths. In equine applications irregular, short bandage lengths result in excessive handling which, in the case of a skittish animal, may place it and its handler at risk of injury.
Preferably a bandage roll can be held in one hand, which imposes a size limitation on roll diameters. Furthermore, since a smaller diameter results in a greater number of individual rolled bandages, carrying a quantity of such bandages becomes problematic.
Reusing bandages, common in sports activities, physiotherapy and the like, necessitates rerolling which requires either hand rolling, a rather slow and tedious task, or recourse to a bandage rolling device of a type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,571,175 Williams et al, U.S. Pat. No. 3,647,152 Trewella and U.S. Pat. N. 3,664,594 Novak. Bandage rollers described in these patents are expected to perform well for bandages of a fixed width. However, bandages of different widths, as are required from time to time, are not rolled effectively because of the tendency of narrow bandages to wander along the shaft of a winding crank assembly. The result is a skewed roll which can jam within the bandage roller.